COVID-19 Vaccine and the VA | VeteransNavigator

COVID-19 vaccines at VA

We're working closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other federal partners to provide COVID-19 vaccines to Veterans and VA health care personnel. We know you have a lot of questions, and information is changing quickly. Please check back often for updates. We'll continue to update this page as we have new information to offer.

Stay informed and help us prepare

⇒ Sign up for an easy way to stay informed about our COVID-19 plans. Sign up to stay informed

⇒ When you sign up, we'll also ask about your vaccine plans. Your local VA health facility may use this information to determine when to contact you once your risk group becomes eligible.

Note: We'll contact every eligible Veteran in each risk group. You don’t need to sign up to get a vaccine.

Who can now get a COVID-19 vaccine at VA

We continue to offer COVID-19 vaccines to Veterans as quickly and safely as we can. We still have a limited amount of vaccines. So, we continue to follow our phased plan based on VA and CDC COVID-19 risk criteria. Our goal is always to do the most good for the most people.

Here’s the latest info on who can now get a COVID-19 vaccine at VA.

Veterans who already receive care at VA

Many VA health facilities now offer COVID-19 vaccines to Veterans who meet these 2 criteria:

The Veteran already receives care at VA, and
The Veteran is at least 75 years old or has health problems that increase risk for severe illness from COVID-19. We base risk on VA and CDC COVID-19 risk criteria.

Some facilities also now offer vaccines to more Veterans, including Veterans 65 years and older.

Please know that different facilities are at different phases of our vaccine plan. Facilities will continue to adjust their local plans based on these factors:

How much vaccine is currently available at the facility
The needs of the local facility and community
The number of Veterans in each risk group who want a vaccine
The strict requirements for how the facility must store and handle the vaccine

If you’re a Veteran who already receives care at VA, your facility will contact you when you can get a vaccine. To learn about your facility’s current plan, find the facility’s website. Once you're on the site, go to Health care services, then COVID-19 in the menu.

Some designated family caregivers

Some designated family caregivers may also be able to get a COVID-19 vaccine at VA. Vaccinating caregivers helps us support and protect Veterans. For a caregiver to be eligible for a vaccine, both of these must be true:

The caregiver must be enrolled in our Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC), and
The Veteran they care for must be currently eligible for a vaccine based on VA and CDC risk criteria.

If you’re an eligible caregiver, we’ll tell you if you can get a vaccine when we invite the Veteran to get one.

Here’s what you should know while you wait

Please wait for us to contact you about getting a COVID-19 vaccine. You don’t need to call us or come to a VA health facility to reserve or request a vaccine. Our staff will only provide vaccines to Veterans and caregivers who are currently eligible for one based on VA and CDC risk criteria. We’ll contact you when you’re eligible.
Note: You’ll need to wait at least 14 days between getting a COVID-19 vaccine and any other vaccine.
Your VA health facility may invite you to get a COVID-19 vaccine at a large vaccination event or by appointment. You may receive an invite by phone, email, or text message. If you’re eligible and you want a vaccine, we encourage you to respond. But make sure the phone call, email, or text is really from VA before you provide any personal information or click on any links.
Note: Text messages will always come from 53079. Emails will always come from a va.gov email address.

If you have questions, here’s how to get the information you need:

For ongoing updates on our COVID-19 vaccine plan, sign up for email updates.
For more details on your local VA health facility’s current plan, find your facility’s website. Once you're on the facility's website, go to Health care services, then COVID-19 in the menu.
For answers to general questions about getting a vaccine at VA, read our FAQs below or use our coronavirus chatbot. If you don’t find your answer there, call our MyVA411 main information line at 800-698-2411 (TTY: 711).
For more information about how your personal risk for COVID-19 will determine when you can get a vaccine, send a secure message to your VA health care provider. If you don’t receive care at VA, contact your primary health care provider.

How we created our phased COVID-19 vaccine plan

We based our phased COVID-19 vaccine plan on these criteria from CDC guidelines:

Risk of becoming infected with the virus
Risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19
Risk of spreading the virus to others
Risk of harm to society if essential workers, including health care personnel, are unable to work

We are following CDC guidelines for determining who is at high risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19. Factors that may influence the risk of severe illness include the following:

Age. The risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19 increases with age.

Existing health problems. People with certain health problems (like diabetes, heart disease, or obesity) have a higher risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19.
Other factors that raise a person's risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19, such as living in a nursing home or other group living facility.

To learn more about people at increased risk, go to the CDC website.

Basic information about getting your vaccine at VA

As the supply of vaccine increases, we'll work with our care teams to let you know your options. It’s your choice if you want to get a vaccine or not. Your decision won’t affect your VA health care or any of your VA benefits in any way.

Where we’ll offer vaccines

The first 2 authorized COVID-19 vaccines require special storage and handling. Because of this, we have a limited supply of vaccines. Our VA facilities will provide vaccines to Veterans receiving VA health care who are most at risk.

When more vaccines are available, we’ll determine when we can provide vaccines through our community provider network.

Eligibility

When more vaccines become available, we plan to offer a free COVID-19 vaccine to all Veterans receiving VA health care who want one.

Your team will contact you when a vaccine is available to you. If you decide to get the vaccine, your team will help you schedule your appointments.

If you’re not currently receiving health care through VA, find out if you're eligible and how to apply now.

Note: You’ll need to wait at least 14 days between getting a COVID-19 vaccine and any other vaccine.

Safety

The U.S. vaccine safety system ensures that all vaccines are as safe as possible. Safety is a top priority as federal partners work to make COVID-19 vaccines available.

Before the FDA authorizes a vaccine for use, they carefully review the available safety data and clinical trial results for that vaccine. To learn more about the safety of the 2 authorized COVID-19 vaccines, read the FDA fact sheets in English and other languages.

Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine fact sheets:

Moderna COVID-19 vaccine fact sheets:

We’ll closely monitor everyone who gets a COVID-19 vaccine for reactions, side effects, or adverse events. An adverse event is an injury or harm that happens to someone after they receive a vaccine, which may or may not have been caused by the vaccine.

We’ll report this information in our vaccine monitoring and tracking system. This is the same system we use to monitor reactions to all vaccines, including those for the flu and shingles.

To learn more about COVID-19 vaccine safety, go to the CDC website.

For answers to more frequently asked questions about COVID-19 vaccines, go to the CDC website.